D 639 
.L2 P65 
Copy 1 







021 929 005 6 



Hollinger Corp. 
pH 8.5 



When you have read this, please pass it on to a friend. 
BULLETIN NO. 40 FEBRUARY, I9I8 

THE AMERICAN RIGHTS LEAGUE 

, Q rof Upholding the Dttty of the Repwblic 

\ ^^ in International Relations _^_ 

1 .L2 065 2 WEST 45th ST., NEW YORK 

1 Copy 1 ® 

LABOR AND THE WAR 

THE FATE OF CIVILIZATION HANGS UPON ACTION OF WORLD'S WORKERS 

By GEORGE HAVEN PUTNAM 

It is not too much to say that the decision of this world's war, a decision upon 
which depends the status of civiHzation for many years to come, is dependent 
upon the action of labor, organized and unorganized, in the various countries 
concerned. The men who work with their hands constitute the majority in all 
communities, and their service must be secured in part for the fighting lines and 
in part for the work required to maintain the fighting lines, and to maintain at 
the same time the essential industries of the countries whose troops are at the 
front. 

During the three years of the war the workingmen have in large part given evi- 
dence of a good understanding of the nature of the issues that were being fought 
out and they have much to their credit in the matter of loyal service and of a readi- 
ness to put to one side, under the pressure of war needs, contentions and convic- 
tions concerning the proper limit for working hours and the readiness to carry on 
work with men who had not accepted membership in the unions. The unions in 
Great Britain have (after certain troublesome delays) finally adopted a war policy 
by means of which the full strength of their membership is being contributed to 
the maintenance of the war resources of the nation. 

On this side of the Atlantic Mr. Gompers has used his great influence in favor 
of wise and patriotic action on the part of organized labor. He has rendered 
enormous service to the country and to the cause in making clear to the members 
of the unions two things: First, that iii common with all thecitizensof theRepublic 
they owe service, and that in time of emergency they owe exceptional service; 
and, second, that from the point of view of their own personal advantage they 
have a very direct personal interest in doing their part to bring the war to a suc- 
cessful close in such fashion that the liberties of the Republic may be preserved, 
that its obligations may be fulfilled, and that the prosperity of its productive 
industries may be assured for the yeais to come. 

PATRIOTIC LABOR 

It is proper to recall, however, that certain of the workingmen in this country 
have refused to accept the policy of patriotic leaders like Mr. Gompers. Some 
groups have endeavored to utilize for their own petty advantage the opportunities 
given b}'' the pressure for war production. Others have allowed themselves to 
accept the leadership of the I. W. W. and to take the ground that the real struggle 
to be determined was not that between German militarism and civilization, but 
between what they call capitalism and the interests of the workers. The short- 
sighted selfishness of workers of this kind has been promptly taken advantage 
of by German propagandists, who realize that every interruption to industry in 
this country constitutes a gain for the German cause. It is under the influence 
and with the use of the money of these propagandists that the I. W. W. have been 
encouraged to carry on sabotage, to provoke strikes, to block by means of the 
burning of factories, by bombs, and by the disabling of machinery the production 
of munitions, equipment, and food. 

At this time, when the Republic requires for its defence all its available re- 
sour.ces. of men and of material, a strike of workingmen, mill, mine, factory, or rail- 



road employes, is simply treason. All industries must, for the safety of the coun- 
try, be maintained at full efficiency. The individual who sells information to the 
enemy is not guilty of more serious treason than that which attaches to the 
union calling out a thousand men from the workshop. 

The action of similar groups in Russia has brought enormous disasters upon 
the country. The labor organizations in Russia have taken the ground that the 
educated classes and the so-called bourgeois, who are described by them as repre- 
senting the arch enemy — capitalism — shall have no part in the government of the 
country. The labor committees which for the moment control affairs in Petro- 
grad, and who are trying to control the country, have shown their understanding, 
of national honor and of national interests by announcing their intention to re- 
pudiate the national debt. They have at the same time taken possession of bank 
deposits and of the contents of the shops of the metropolis. 

Their standard of action is that of crazy children who have broken into a candy 
shop. They believe that it is going to be possible to carry on the industries of 
Russia, upon which industries depends, of course, the livelihood of the workers, 
without the use of organized capital. They believe that it is going to be possible 
to maintain the independence of the nation after operations which mean the 
piratical appropriation of resources that have been loaned to Russia by France, 
England, and the United States. The actions of the labor unions in Petrograd 
show labor at its worst. So far no leader has appeared with a wisdom and pa- 
triotism like that of Mr. Gompers to rescue these children from their wicked folly. 
BRITISH WORKMEN IN THE '60'S 

I may recall in this connection the wise and patriotic action taken by certain 
English working folk in the years between i86i-'65. The cotton operators in 
Manchester, Oldham, and other manufacturing centres were, after the beginning 
of 1862, starving because for want of cotton the mills had closed. Leaders like 
Palmerston, Russell, and John Delane of the London Times, and other friends 
of Louis Napoleon and of the cause of the South, were trying to convince these men 
of Lancashire that their influence must be used to induce the government to inter- 
vene in the American war and to secure the independence of the Confederacy. 
In this way, said the Times, and only in this way, can it be possible to secure a 
speedy peace and to bring again to the factories of England the supplies of cotton 
which were required to save the working folk from starvation. 

These men of Lancashire, putting to one side such specious suggestions, ac- 
cepted the leadership of John Bright, Richard Cobden, and the Duke of Argyll. 
They refused to give the weight of their votes and influence in behalf of a cause 
which stood for human slavery. They held, with John Bright, that the mainten- 
ance of the American Republic was essential for the interests of representative 
government, of goverrmient for the people, not only in America, but in England 
and throughout the world. The American Minister, Mr. Adams, asked John 
Bright what could be done to help these starving operators, and Bright suggested 
that America might send food. Committees were formed in New York and in 
Boston, including in their membership list such men as John M. Forbes, Moses 
H. Grinnell, William E. Dodge, A. T. Stewart, George P. Putnam, and others. 
Supplies of food were purchased and were forwarded in three vessels to Liverpool, 
consigned to a committee that Bright had organized for the purpose. This sym- 
pathetic gift constituted the recognition from America of the sturdy patriotism 
of the workingmen of England. 

The lesson is one that can well be taken to heart by working folk to-day 
throughout the world. Irrespective of their duty as citizens, their livelihood is 
bound up with the securing of a peace that shall be an assured peace. Their 
interests are definitely opposed to militarism, which means the continuation of the 
burdens of standing armies and the certain renewal of war in the near future. 

If the working people on both sides of the Atlantic will see clearly and will act 
with wisdom and patriotism, the doom of militarism is assured and the world will 
be made safe for democracy. g, .. . ^. 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



021 929 005 6 



HoUinger Corp. 
pH 8.5 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



021 929 005 6 



Hollinger Corp. 
pH8.5 



